In other linkage, here’s our Game Of The Year podcast. I'm
sure most of you have probably heard it already, but just in case, here you go.
Oh, and brace yourself for our GOTY selection… It’s absolutely not what you’d
expect.

If you want something else to listen to, I was a recent
guest on the @Father_Nation Podcast, and I talked with Jesse Foster about my
views on parenting, videogames and kids, homeschooling, appreciating wives, and
more. It's all about being a dad and not so much about videogames, but if you
want to hear some of my other views and to get to know me a little better,
here's your shot.

I asked folks to send me their own personal GOTY lists, and
here’s a brief list of sumbissions. Check ‘em out and feel free to disagree all
you want!

If you were one of the select few, Nintendo emailed you demo
codes for the upcoming Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate. I was lucky enough to get
some, so I've been playing the demo with my wife and some friends, and I
couldn't be more excited. I'm going to reserve my in-depth comments for now
since I'm sure I’ll be talking about it quite a bit once it hits, but I will
share a couple of resources right now.

First off, if you're a person who's been thinking about
jumping into the series but you don't really know anything about it, I strongly
recommend this Monster Hunter Beginner’s Guide by Roy Blakely, also known as @Kotowari.

I've been through the guide myself and his advice is 100% spot-on. The only
caveat with this is that the guide was based on MH3U, and has not been updated
for MH4U. As such, there are (of course) going to be some differences between
the versions, but the core information and instructions here still apply. It's
still an excellent resource to get started.

Another great resource is this starter’s list explaining the weapons, accompanied by brief commentary. Written by @AEvanko, his Gaijin Hunter blog is written with the hand of
someone who really understands the game on an expert level.

Noooooooooooo!

Finally, one last thing about Monster Hunter before I move
on… Basically, kind of an embarrassing admission. I went to Amazon a couple of
days ago to check on the status of my preorders, and I just about fell over in
shock when I realized that I had completely forgotten to order the collector’s
edition of MH4U. I would have sworn on a stack of Bibles that I had ordered two
copies of the CE, but when I checked, there was absolutely nothing there… I was
thunderstruck.

I have no idea how it happened, but it totally slipped my
mind and now not only is the collectors edition sold out, the Gamestop Monster
Hunter-themed 3DS was also sold out before I had a chance to order. There are no words.

Here’s a quick update on @MarvelPuzzle Quest: the current PVE
reward is a brand-new character, Squirrel Girl.

I've never heard of her before
and I've never read anything with her in it, but apparently she's pretty
popular… The competition is fierce at the moment, so she must have a pretty
loyal legion of fans.

Finally, on the most recent @Gamecritics podcast (it hasn't
been published yet, but look for it on Monday or Tuesday) we talked about how
much time we have to play games, how much of a chance we give games to hook us
before we kick them to the curb, and so forth. It got me thinking about my
backlog, which is huge. It may not be as big as some people (@Horrorgeek and
@Finalmacstorm, I’m looking at you guys) but it's pretty big.

I felt like I should be perfectly honest with myself in admitting
that I wasn't going to ever touch some of these titles given what limited free
time I have and the huge amount of new stuff coming down the pipe every day, so
I decided to cull the herd and get rid of stuff that I'm pretty sure I’ll never
play.

You are never going to be played!!!

I've listed the titles below that got the axe (of course,
these are just physical copies… I haven't taken a tally of my downloads yet) but
I feel pretty safe in saying that these ones aren't anything that I’ll be
missing out on.

That said, if any of you have any strong feelings about any of
these, or any reasons why I should take another look at them in a critical
sense, let me know. Any titles on this list that don't receive any votes of
support are going into a cardboard box that will eventually be stored right
next to the Ark of the Covenant in that big warehouse.

THE NIXED LIST

Vita:

Natural Doctrine – ridiculous difficulty

PS3:

God of War: Ascension – had enough of Kratos

Uncharted 3 – heard it was crap, not a big UC fan to begin
with

Under Defeat HD

360:

Burnout Paradise

Devil May Cry 4 – got halfway, bailed

Eternal Sonata

Fracture

Lost Odyssey – stopped halfway, forgot where I was

Red Faction: Guerrilla – got halfway, bailed

Resident Evil 6 – do I even need to say anything?

Risen 2: Dark Waters – heard Risen 3 is the same thing, but
better

Sniper Elite V2

SSX

The First Templar

The Last Remnant – heard it was hella busted

Venetica

Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise – Had enough w/ the first
one

Edit: Singularity was on this list, but I had a number of folks chip in and say it was worth a play, so Singularity has been returned to the backlog!

Achtung! Berlin is burning and Adolf Hitler has risen from
his grave to gather an army of Undead Super Soldiers who are poised to spill
blood and guts across Europe. Only one thing stands in their way – you, and the
fleshy sacks bristling with guns and explosives you call your best friends.

Zombie Army Trilogy, rising early 2015, gives Xbox One
gamers and PlayStation 4 gamers their first chance to experience the
blood-pumping co-op shooter series that became a cult sensation on PC. Former
enemies become allies as the living fight against the dead.

Packed with apocalyptic new content and two eye-popping
remasters Zombie Army Trilogy also includes the never-seen-before
third instalment in the series and a brand new horde mode, delivering the
ultimate package for fans of adrenaline-fuelled gunplay and harrowing
intensity.

Zombie Army Trilogy will be self-published by Rebellion on
all formats and will be available for download via Xbox Live, the Playstation
Network and Steam for PC. A retail version will also be available.

· Battle through 15
gut-wrenching missions spanning THREE epic campaigns across the irradiated,
demon-infested ruins of World War Two Germany.

· Wrestle the
occult powers in the campaign and across FIVE terrifying horde maps. Face the
horrors alone or fight back-to-back in 2-4 player online co-op.

· Fight as elite
sniper, Karl Fairburne or one of EIGHT playable heroes including FOUR new
female characters, armed with over 25 iconic weapons and explosive traps.

· Take on legions
of Undead Super Soldiers, Armoured Skeletons, Zombie Snipers, Chainsaw Elites,
Fire Demons and more, before facing the demonic Hitler himself in a final stand
to decide the fate of mankind!

· Bask in the
gruesome glow of the infamous X-Ray Kill Cam, and watch in gory detail as
rotting flesh and organs are shredded from the inside.

As a thank you to the fans that made the series a cult hit,
Rebellion are also offering an exclusive loyalty discount to owners of the
first two Nazi Zombie Army games via Steam before launch.

The official website, www.ZombieArmy.com has
been unleashed on the interwebs with more information and FREE content
including an exclusive MP3 album of atmospheric compositions from the game’s
soundtrack by Nick D Brewer.

*

We are delighted to announce that the
dungeon-crawling action RPG adventure,Brandish: The Dark Revenant, will be
available for digital download on January 13, 2015 in North America for the PSP
(PlayStation®Portable) system at a price point of $19.99. This title will be
fully compatible with the PlayStation®Vita handheld entertainment system
and PlayStation®TV system at launch.

Featuring an innovative "world turning" mechanic,
players will be immersed in a third person real-time dungeon-crawling adventure
with a first person flair, dungeon walls rotating around their avatar as each
corner is turned.

The first wave of PlayStation®4 players is set to deploy to
Auraxis on January 20, 2015. Today, Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) announced that the
critically-acclaimed, free-to-play massively multiplayer online first-person
shooter (MMOFPS), PlanetSide 2, will enter Closed Beta for the PlayStation 4
(PS4) computer entertainment system in North America this month.

Starting with a few thousand initial invites, the amount of
players with access to the Closed Beta will steadily increase through the Beta
period. Players will be invited to the Beta in chronological order of when they
signed up. Players can opt in by email for a chance to participate in the
Closed Beta through the PlanetSide 2 website:https://www.planetside2.com/ps2onps4.

PlanetSide 2 Closed Beta will begin on Jan. 20,
2015 for the PlayStation 4, with a full PS4 launch slated for later this
year. For additional details on the PlayStation 4 version, visit the PlanetSide
2 FAQ: https://www.planetside2.com/faq.

Etrian Mystery Dungeon is going to be a doozie when it comes
out in spring 2015. The roguelike RPG from Atlus and Spike Chunsoft will bring
delight to your ears when it launches, because we're including a soundtrack CD
with pre-orders and limited first-run copies of EMD. We have more details
coming soon, but for now, enjoy the splendor of the brand new trailer! So if
you were wondering how Etrian Odyssey and Mystery Dungeon fit together, there
you go!

NIS America has a few awesome announcements for you before
the year ends and the wonderful new year begins.

We are very excited to officially announce that the next
entry in the long-lived Disgaea series, Disgaea 5: Alliance of
Vengeance is making its way to North America and Europe in Fall 2015, for
the PlayStation®4 entertainment system! Disgaea 5: Alliance of Vengeance will
be available as both a physical and digital release.

Second, we are also very happy to announce that the dungeon crawler RPG, Operation
Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy will be making its way to North America and Europe
in March of 2015, available on the PlayStation®Vita. This title will be
available as a physical and digital release. Website and trailer will be coming
soon, so please keep an eye out for it!

Last but not least, we are pleased to announce that The Awakened Fate
Ultimatum will be coming to North America on March 17, 2015 and
to Europe on March 20, 2015, only on the PlayStation®3! The game will be
available as a physical and digital release. We also have a our first batch of
English screenshots for this game, which can be viewed on our asset page
below.

A
limited edition of the title is also available for pre-order from the NISA
Online Store.

*

Independent video game
developer DrinkBox
Studios announced today that it is bringing the distinctively strange
world of its highly anticipated adventure gameSevered exclusively to
the PlayStation®Vita system in Spring of 2015. Filled with ghastly
enemies, including three-headed constellations, six-armed swordmasters and
beasts made of crows, Severed has players take control of a
one-armed heroine wielding a living sword as she knits together pieces of
her story from both the past and the future.

As the heroine, players will embark on a journey through a
surreal, nonlinear world by using a touch-based combat mechanic to defeat
enemies in this first-person adventure. During their journey, warriors will
unlock new abilities, discover secrets of the mysterious world, and grow in
power as they master both offensive and defensive techniques

For more information regarding Severed please
visit the game’s website,
or DrinkBox Studios’ Facebook and Twitter pages. The new Severed trailer can be found here.

*

Leading and award-winning developer and publisher of digital
entertainment Telltale Games, and world-renowned game developer Mojang, today
announced that 'Minecraft: Story Mode - A Telltale Games Series' is in
development and is set to premiere in 2015.

Minecraft: Story Mode will be an all-new
narrative-driven, episodic game series, developed by Telltale in collaboration
with Mojang and members of the Minecraft community. Set in the world of
Minecraft, the game series will introduce new characters and familiar themes,
but will be an entirely original Minecraft experience inspired by the game that
continues to inspire a generation.

Minecraft: Story Mode will be a standalone product,
separate from the core Minecraft game, and will be available to download in
2015 on Xbox consoles, PlayStation consoles, PC, Mac, iOS, and Android-based
devices.

Minecraft: Story Mode - A Telltale Games Series is
currently in development, and is not yet rated by the ESRB. The series will be
published digitally in 2015 by Telltale Games in partnership with Mojang.

*

Independent developer Dennaton Games, rogue publisher
Devolver Digital, and creative production company iam8bit announced that the
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number three-disc vinyl Collector’s Edition will unleash
aural fury onto your ears in early 2015. Fans can now pre-purchase Hotline
Miami 2: Wrong Number via a substantially awesome analog offer presented on
180-gram vinyl for $60. The Collector’s Edition includes a colorful three-disc
vinyl set that hosts the 28 ecstasy-fueled songs from the game and a collectable
phone card containing a download code for Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number and the
full digital soundtrack download on Steam.

The tri-fold jacket encasing the vinyl features original
artwork by Niklas Akerblad, the Swedish artist responsible for the striking
cover art for both Hotline Miami games. The three discs include music from
returning Hotline Miami artists such as M|O|O|N, El Huervo
and Perturbator and newHotline Miami artists Megadrive, Mitch Murder,
and Magic Sword.

Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number is the follow up to the
stylish top-down shooter Hotline Miami from independent developer Dennaton
Games. The original game continues to be a critical and commercial success
since its launch in 2012 that resulted in more than a dozen Game of the Year
nominations and awards from game critics and more than a million copies sold.
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number is set to launch on PC, PlayStation 4,
PlayStation 3, and PlayStation Vita in Q1 2015.

For more information on Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number please
visit www.devolverdigital.com or
follow us on Twitter @devolverdigital and @hotlinemiami.

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1. Your Monster Hunter obsession has to stop!2. That GoTY selection on Gamecritics.com, is really stupid. It ain't even funny, and for a serious podcast and website for grown-ups, it's really almost a sign that you guys don't take your audience serious. My humble opinion. 3. Uncharted 3 you can easily skip, it's exactly the boring stuff you'd expect it to be...4. Do you have any more inside info on when the Next Fallout is to be expected?5. Resident Evil 6 I will play, I do wonder what you think...6. I am NOT a robot!7. What is your take on Dark Souls 1, as in is it not the best in the seroeis but still fun? Or should I skip it and go play DS2? I loved Demon's Souls...

5> It felt like a confused mess. It didn't know what kind of game it wanted to be.

6> OK!

7> Play Dark Souls 2 first. Dark has some good points, but it also has a lot of 'f*** you' to the player that the other two lack. Also, DS2 is highly polished and super approachable. Really enjoyed it a lot.

I feel somehow obligated to play RE6 since I've played the whole series, if anything to see where this shenmuesque budget went. Is it worth it for the production values I wonder. But I fear this will be the one gap in the series I can just never bother with unless I'm in the mood for gears of war.

I am enjoying Evil Within very much and would like to hear you discuss that someday.